No launch from N. Korea; no backing down, either

Originally published April 12, 2012 at 12:00 am

Updated April 12, 2012 at 6:05 am

North Korean guide Kim Won Ho, right, speaks to a foreign journalist near a photo depicting the 2009 satellite rocket launch on Tuesday at the Three Revolutions exhibition hall in Pyongyang, North Korea. Engineers are pumping fuel into a rocket that is set to carry a satellite into space, officials at the North Korean space agency’s central command center said Wednesday, showing reporters a live feed of the west coast launch pad.

North Korea's first chance at a rocket launch came and went Thursday with no word of a liftoff, but also with no sign that Pyongyang intends to call off what the U.S. and its allies consider an attempt to test long-range missile technology.

North Korea’s first chance at a rocket launch came and went Thursday with no word of a liftoff, but also with no sign that Pyongyang intends to call off what the U.S. and its allies consider an attempt to test long-range missile technology.

The launch window for what North Korea says is a observation satellite opened during a week aimed at celebrating Sunday’s centennial of the birth of Kim Il Sung, the country’s late founder. Events also include high-level meetings where new leader Kim Jong Un has received at least three new titles to further cement his rule.

North Korea had told international organizations that its rocket launch would come between Thursday and Monday, between 7 a.m. and noon local time. That timeframe passed Thursday without liftoff.

North Korean space officials, who had taken foreign journalists to the launch control center Wednesday and said fueling was under way, did not comment on the timing of the launch beyond saying it would occur in the five-day window.

Poor weather made a Thursday launch unlikely, Philippine disaster managemment agency chief Benito Ramos said, citing an assessment passed on to him by the Philippine military, which is being briefed by U.S. and Japan counterparts. Wind in particular can scuttle rocket launches.

The United States, Japan, Britain and others say the launch would constitute a provocation and would violate U.N. Security Council resolutions banning North Korea from developing its nuclear and missile programs. Experts say the Unha-3 carrier is similar to the type of rocket that could be used to fire a missile mounted with a nuclear warhead to strike the U.S. or other targets.

North Korea denies that the launch is anything but a peaceful civilian bid to send a satellite into space. The Kwangmyongsong-3 satellite is designed to send back images and data that will be used for weather forecasts and agricultural surveys.

Pyongyang made two previous attempts to launch a satellite, in 1998 and 2009, but the U.S. and other outside observers say there is no evidence that either reached orbit. This week’s planned launch came with more fanfare, with Pyongyang inviting a possibly unprecedented crowd of foreign journalists and other guests.

North Korea also is elevating Kim Jong Un, who has been firmly in power since his father, Kim Jong Il, died in Decemeber.

He was named first secretary of the ruling Workers’ Party at a conference Wednesday, a new top title that allowed the party to grant Kim Jong Il the posthumous title of “eternal general secretary.”

Though he already is considered supreme commander of the armed forces, Kim is expected to gain other new titles formalizing his position as “supreme leader,” possibly including his father’s title of chairman of the National Defense Commission.

Revised party rules now refer to Kim Jong Il as “suryong” – a title meaning “leader” previously reserved for Kim Il Sung. During his rule, Kim Jong Il was referred to as “ryongdoja,” another title meaning “leader.”

The elevation of Kim Jong Il to his father’s status provides a glimpse into how North Korea will handle the nation’s second hereditary succession and indicates he will be honored much in the same way father Kim Il Sung was made “eternal president” following his 1994 death.

Footage aired on state TV on Thursday showed Kim Jong Un seated at the front of the conference with white statues of his grandfather and a new statue of his father in his trademark khaki work ensemble, one arm on his hip. On Mansu Hill, once the domain of a huge bronze statue of Kim Il Sung, a second covered statue awaits its unveiling.

Workers’ Party delegates also elected a new generation of younger officials to key posts, including Choe Ryong Hae, a new vice marshal who will join Kim on the powerful Presidium of the Central Committee’s Political Bureau.

Ken Gause, a North Korea specialist at CNA, a U.S.-based research organization, said younger members also were promoted at the last party conference in September 2010, when Kim Jong Un was made vice chairman of the Central Military Commission.

“I expect in the near future, as Kim Jong Un begins to consolidate his power, we will see more,” he said in an email interview.

Six other people were named to the Political Bureau of the Central Committee, including Jang Song Thaek, who is married to Kim Jong Il’s sister, Kim Kyong Hui.